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Super PAC challenge: Congress

Elections of party leaders -- like Reid, Pelosi, Boehner and McConnell -- could be next for Super PAC's. | AP Photos

And while the South Carolina conservative’s self-imposed two-term limit means he’s not looking for a leadership gig, one of his acolytes, Wisconsin Sen. Ron Johnson, lost a race for conference vice chairman by three votes to leadership-backed Sen. Roy Blunt (R-Mo.) earlier this year.

Folks who study congressional fundraising say money isn’t enough to buy a leadership election. And they’re right. But it helps create the basis for the relationships that lead to votes in the secret ballots used for leadership races.

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“Money can be a relationship starter, but it isn’t the only determining factor when members are selecting party leaders. Likability, intelligence and the long-term ability to raise money for the party are all factors,” said a senior House Democratic aide who is familiar with the blood sport of caucus elections. “All told, money can’t buy popularity. It can help, but it has to come as part of a larger package.”

Political insiders say there aren’t very many House or Senate members who can raise the kind of money needed to become influential individual players — and most of them already are in leadership, having used the old money system of leadership PACs to build their followings in Congress.

But that doesn’t mean backbenchers won’t start using the new tool to advance themselves.

“I think it’s to be expected. We’re back in the soft-money era,” Democratic lobbyist and über-fundraiser Steve Elmendorf said. “It might take one or two cycles.”

Still, a handful of lawmakers have started down the super PAC path — or are at least benefiting from them. Three super PACs are supporting Rep. Howard Berman (D-Calif.) in his redistricting-spurred primary against Rep. Brad Sherman (D-Calif.), according to the Center for Responsive Politics.

Rank-and-file lawmakers looking to move up may have at least one advantage in that their spending can track with any set of candidates who will support them in Washington, whereas established party leaders can’t go too far afield from what the Republican and Democratic campaign committees are doing without drawing accusations that they are acting in their self-interest rather than the party’s.

There are any number of challenges to executing the super PAC strategy.

First and foremost, lawmakers’ influence in the organization’s planning, fundraising and spending has to be limited because they’re not allowed to directly coordinate with the super PAC.

Officeholders and candidates are prohibited from collecting checks that exceed federal caps, so a House member or senator can’t just hire a clerk to run his or her super PAC.

Elmendorf said it can only work if the lawmaker is comfortable being in the room for fundraisers, even though he or she can’t directly solicit checks for more than the limits on federal officeholders.

Also, Murray said, there aren’t many aides who have the gravitas to make the big-dollar “ask” when a donor is accustomed to having personal contact with the lawmaker.

“There’s a big, big difference going out and saying, ‘Can you support us for $5,000?’ and saying, ‘Hey, I need a million dollars,’” he said.

Readers' Comments (22)

"The formula is simple. Raise $10 million from the jet set or grass-roots followers, spend it on 40 to 50 House districts or 15 Senate races and then call in favors when it’s time to count votes for speaker, floor leader or whip"

Pictured are the Pros at selling legislation. Obama, a master at selling legislation for campaign promises, help, money and goodies is not pictured.

Our Congress and Administration is adept at making their own flower beds grow with greenery while they hose the taxpayers. Just recently they banged away at the Social Security Fund while they left their pension plans remain profitable. They get raises, new cars, better junkets and the military gets cuts.

The WORLD of OBAMA is UPSIDE DOWN with CORRUPTION and we the people are paying the price

Super Pacs is the second most asinine decison made by the Supreme Court..The first one, without a doubt, was making George W. Bush the President.The supreme court should have to "recertified"just like teachers do.. They feel like they are GOD. They should be reelected, and they should have to present homework every 3 years, like a term paper or something.

They are gettin senile...REJECT THE SUPER PACS...Look what they are doing to our nation: More than ever the elections are won by who can put more money forward. Let's ask Drug dealers to help us out elect those candidates that have not even be aboe to make it to the "debates

Super Pacs is the second most asinine decison made by the Supreme Court..The first one, without a doubt, was making George W. Bush the President.The supreme court should have to "recertified"just like teachers do.. They feel like they are GOD. They should be reelected, and they should have to present homework every 3 years, like a term paper or something.

They are gettin senile...REJECT THE SUPER PACS...Look what they are doing to our nation: More than ever the elections are won by who can put more money forward. Let's ask Drug dealers to help us out elect those candidates that have not even be aboe to make it to the "debates

The only way the American public should agree to the use of Super PAC's for these Congressional Creeps is if they agree to two or three term limits. That's good enough for our State congress members AND the most powerful office in the world, the POTUS. Those old farts who are already beyond that could be grandfathered in, but their eventual replacements will also be limited.

The SCOTUS really handed this country over to the rich and powerful, as if they didn't already own it. Now we have super PACS, comprised of maybe a couple dozen individuals, mostly billionaiers, who are poised to literally buy the entire federal government. But we will have Alito's words that wealth in no way corrupts government to comfort us. While we're being driven into third world status by the greedy owners of this country.

Super PAC's were a great idea, and if they had people running them that knew how the people of America looked at news and candidates, they would know that you must go after all of America to win. But right now they are spending 10’s of millions of dollars to try and secure the nomination and they have either forgotten or don’t understand that once someone has won you still have to face President Obama, and dirty TV ads won’t win. If they don’t start spending small amounts now compared to what they spend per state on TV on Facebook, Google + and Twitter building up users who will see and share with their family and friends, then all they have done is waste huge amounts of money.

Yes Super PAC’s were a great idea: Were?? But they have not seemed to have figured out that elections are about winning in the end, not only who will get to run. President Obama figured this out a long time ago; to win he needed millions upon millions of Americas to see his message daily, not on TV but on websites people spend their time on. As of today Mitt Romney the most likely person to win the nomination has 1.5 Million fans on Facebook, President Obama has 25 million, yes it is only March and the election is not until November, but if Super PAC’s want to help get their person elected they need to start today in building him up on sites that people really pay attention too and share with their family and friends, because who we vote for comes down to one key element who helps us choose? Our families and our friends, and so far Mitt is losing the battle to reach people on a personal level, which will cost him the election. Why have the Super PAC’s forgotten the message of winning, best guess is that they are new to this game of politics and maybe think that money only wins elections, not true capturing the hearts and minds of the people win and always will. Today there are over 155,000,000 Americans on Facebook according to Facebook’s own numbers, and according to Facebook 85% of these are over 18 years of age, meaning that over 50% of the voting population in America is on Facebook. If Super PAC’s don’t wise up today and spend some money on building up their person on Facebook, Google + and Twitter they won’t get the message out and people will only here stories good or bad. The world of elections and communication has changed allot over the last four years, Super PAC’s being a very small part of that, the real people in America still cast their votes and those votes depends on how much real information they have on a person, not TV ads or radio spots or even You Tube, but daily information they can easily share with their families and friends, information they can talk about and really understand. So how do Super PAC’s help build up long term their person, by working with companies that specialize on helping get the message out to people, placing ads really does not work anymore it is a waste of money and time and companies like Facebook, Google and Twitter make it harder and harder to reach millions of people without spending millions of dollars and it is still hit or miss. Now there are companies like AppSame which puts real people on the streets, meeting with the real voters, and since the iPad and other devices like it are now so widely used and all access the internet almost anywhere, people can be met with shown information and helped to share it across their pages getting it to all of their family and friends within seconds. This information stays with the user and they see daily if not much more often what a candidate is truly about. But we will have to see Super PAC’s are new and so is the use of sites like Facebook, Google + and Twitter maybe this election it is Obama and the Democrats again, but maybe just maybe Super PAC’s and their candidates will wake up on time and see that spending millions upon millions does not always win, getting people to know who you are and what you stand for does.

When you mix a corrupt Supreme Court , allowing legal bribery with the Citizens United ruling, with dirtbag politicians and lots of dirty money eager to enter the pockets of politicians that are willing to be bought and paid for by the corrupt, then you know this bribery will happen. It destroys the goals of our Founders and shreds our Constitution, but when you have so much dirt all over the place, these evil forces don't care about our Constitution as long as they get dirty money in their bank accounts.